Are Large Non-Profits Paying Their Share?

Last week, Pittsburgh Mayor Luke Ravenstahl announced the City of Pittsburgh would be filing a lawsuit against University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) seeking a removal of UPMC’s tax-exempt status and payment of back payroll taxes.

I commend Mayor Ravenstahl and the city for challenging UPMC’s non-profit status and for bringing this issue before the Court of Common Pleas to determine whether UPMC deserves its current non-profit status. UPMC should welcome the opportunity to provide transparency and prove to the public that they are truly non-profit, once and for all.

The time has come to address whether all large non-profits are paying their fair share. I have re-introduced legislation that would amend the Purely Public Charity Act to require all large non-profits to pay real estate taxes based on the value of their land. Senate Bill 143 (SB 143) would require non-profit organizations that own real property to pay taxes on the assessed value of the land only (not buildings), with the first $200,000 of land value being exempt from taxation. The exemption would apply to all property owned by the organization, not per parcel.

My legislation seeks to address the imbalance created by organizations where profit is clearly a driving factor. Exempting the first $200,000 of land value from taxation ensures that smaller non-profits that provide services that government would otherwise have to perform are not affected.  Large non-profits, including UPMC, buy large parcels of land but because of their status, are exempt from paying certain taxes.

Requiring large non-profits to pay taxes on only their land value begins to address the inconsistency that currently exists and reduces the burden currently being placed upon individual taxpayers.

Senator Wayne D. Fontana

42nd Senatorial District

www.senatorfontana.com